3 Most loved overnight oats recipes

 What are overnight oats?

You might have come across overnight oats recipe somewhere sometime before, if you have no clue about it let me give you a quick little insight. Overnight oats are a Zero cooking method of making oatmeal. Instead of cooking your oats with milk/water, you mix rolled oats with the milk and other few ingredients, and let it sit in the fridge overnight. In the morning you have a pudding/porridge ready for easy grab-and-go breakfasts. 

What do overnight oats taste like?

This is a question my mum asked me when I told her that you can make oats even without cooking and my response was, if overnight oats didn’t taste good, I would never eat them; She understood my point as she knew my food habits that taste comes first for before anything. For my young friends, the best part is no cooking means, the best deal.

How do you eat overnight oats warm or cold?

It’s absolutely your choice; you can heat up your overnight oats if you like your puddings hot. I love them chilled straight out of the fridge. However, if you want it warm, just heat it in the microwave for 60 seconds.

Are overnight oats healthy?

Yes, it is unless you load it with chocolates/candy/sugar, then it become your favorite dessert too.

What about digesting uncooked oats?

Oats contain high levels of phytic acid means it can be challenging to digest for some people. Soaking it overnight will help; soak your rolled oats in warm milk overnight. If you fall in this category soak before making overnight oats for 4-6 hours otherwise, if you don’t face any digestive issues you can use your rolled oats directly for preparation.

Preparing overnight oats: List  of basic ingredients

·     Old-Fashioned/Rolled Oats—You can use any oats quick-cooking to steel-cut but rolled oats give the best result. If you are on a gluten-free diet/ allergic to gluten make sure to use gluten-free oats.

·         Milk—It can be both non-dairy/ dairy milk or any plant-based milk of your choice. I prefer unsweetened low-fat dairy as no one in my house is allergic to dairy.

·         Yogurt– Greek is not necessary I prefer to use normal yogurt as it comes cheap. If I want more creamy then sometimes I use hung/ strained yogurt. You can any yogurt even plant-based just use unsweetened so later on you can adjust sweetness as per your taste. Many recipe designers don’t use yogurt in their overnight oats, but I prefer it as it gives a creamier texture and a morning dose of probiotics.

·         Chia Seeds/ sweet basil seed—I am all about making my first meal nutrient-dense so I preferably use it. They act as thickener and gives a creamy texture. Both chia seeds and Basil seeds have nutritional benefits of their own.

·    Maple Syrup or Honey or Date syrup— you can use either according to your preferred taste. I prefer to use very less but you can use it according to your taste buds.

     

Salt–If you find the taste “flat,” the next morning just add a pinch of salt in your next preparation.
Flavoring---I generally, avoid adding any flavors rather try to load my overnight oats with fresh fruits and berries or dried fruit unsalted and unsweetened ones. But you can add any flavor or essence of your choice.

3 Most loved overnight oats recipes

Apple Cinnamon: Chopped apples, pecans, Honey, almond, and ground cinnamon, this variation is my favorite recipe that has a sweet taste and crunchiness from the fruit and nuts.

Oreo crush: For days when you want your overnight oats to serve the purpose of a dessert and satisfy your sweet taste. Add crushed oreo, some almonds, and peeled oranges to balance the taste and crunch.

Fruit garden: Add chopped fruit of your choice, but my favorite is a mix of apples, orange black grapes, and pomegranate. Add a dash of honey for sweetness and chopped almonds/ pecan for extra crunch.

How I prepare the base for overnight oats

The measurements mentioned here are for one serving for one person you multiply based on the number of your serving.

Oats: 4 Tbsp rolled oats or any oats of your choice

Chia seed: 2 Tbsp chia seed/ sweet basil seed

Milk:100 ml of milk of your choice ( you can increase if you want your oats to be a little runny, this measurement will porridge-like consistency).

Yogurt: 2 Tbsp yogurt of your choice(flavored, greek, hung).

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